It may only be a few weeks since Barack Obama was re-elected for a second term as President of the US, but potential successors to the leader are already looking ahead to the 2016 election by buying various domain names that could be of use to them during any prospective presidential campaign.
A number of leading politicians in the US are involved in a “land grab” as they aim to secure the web addresses they feel could be ideal for their attempt to assume control of the country, reports Politico.
Rick Santorum is tipped by many to launch a bid to become president and he has possibly started his campaign by buying up RickSantorum2016.com, RickSantorum2016.net and Santorum2016.net. Other addresses – including JoeBiden2016.com, Christie2016.com and ElizabethWarren2016.com – have also been secured, although it is unclear whether these have gone to the potential candidates themselves.
Karl Frisch, a digital campaign strategist who worked for Howard Dean’s groundbreaking presidential bid in 2004, explained that the right domain names can be crucial in such a scenario. He noted “something to easily remember and type in” is very much in demand among politicians who are targeting the White House.
Mr Frisch sounded a word of advice for the candidates, telling them that including a year in their chosen domain name is not always the best option. He suggested choosing a timeless address can in fact be a shrewder move.
Just hours after Obama won his second term by defeating Mitt Romney in the recent election, Ohio attorney Andrew Samtoy decided to buy ChristieKasich.com. Elsewhere in the US, Ayotte2016.com, ClintonCuomo.com, RubioChristie.com and SantorumBush.com had long since been snapped up.
Indeed, in August, Romney boosted his ultimately unsuccessful campaign by acquiring about a dozen new domain names that he believed would raise his profile and bring up issues to undermine Obama.
This fact illustrates just how important a domain can be to candidates and, in many cases, how early they are prepared to act to secure them.